Nothing Else Matters
by littlepurplelove
Summary: An alternate way of Nathan and Haley getting together; based off of 1x7, what if Brooke didn't make up the lie of Nathan passing around Haley's letter and they spent the night together? Slight AU-One Shot.


**Hi guys. So i am new to fanfic so please pardon me if the story isn't very good. This is not my first story but it is my first on FanFic. This is about Nathan and Haley, that's it. If you do not like them as a couple then please do not read. But thank you all so much for taking your time to read it! I hope you enjoy and please review! Thanks! **

**Characters: **Nathan and Haley

**Rating: **T (just to be safe)

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own One Tree Hill, any of its characters, or any of its lines or stories. They all belong to Mark Schwahn and creaters of OTH.

**Summary: **Naley story – slight AU. alternate way of Nathan and Haley getting together; based off of 1x7, what if Brooke didn't make up the lie of Nathan passing around Haley's letter and they spent the night together?

**Enjoy!**

_This party sucks_. It was all Nathan had thought about all night. When the past basketball parties held at the Scott household grew boring, Nathan would usually find a cheerleader, too dumb to think rationally, to hook-up with. But this time, that just didn't seem right. Nathan didn't know why or how, but there was a girl filling his mind and heart that seemed to be all he could think about nowadays. It's not like they were dating, hell they hadn't even kissed yet but it somehow felt like no one else mattered anymore. She was different, in a very good way. She was caring, kind, strong, feisty, quirky…anything and everything. And boy was she pretty. Nathan couldn't get the image of her auburn hair falling gently around the luscious skin of her neck, and beautiful brown eyes or soft pink lips out of his mind, and he didn't want to. He just wished he knew what those feelings meant. And if she felt the same way.

He decided now was a good a time as any to grab a beer. He knew his was underage but he also knew where his dad kept a stash of bourbon, and really didn't give a damn. He made his way through the sea of people to the living room, where the bar was, when he spotted a familiar brunette in her normal jeans and a t-shirt. _It's gotta be her._

"Haley?" He asked baffled by the fact that she was here. But he was even more so by the fact that she wasn't in the formal attire for the party. _I wonder why she came. Did she want to see me?_

"Hey," she exclaimed, looking slightly uncomfortable. "I'm not crashing I promise, your mom just wanted some cakes." _Does he look happy to see me? I hope is. _She thought to herself.

"Cakes?"

"Yeah, it's a long story. She invited me to stay and I sort of had a brain freeze and said 'sure.' And I- it's probably really weird, I'm actually gonna leave…" she rambled on while turning towards the door slightly. _Oh god, I hope he doesn't think I'm a freak for rambling. _

"No, no, no. I'm glad you came," he convinced. _Play it cool…_

"Really?" _Please say yes, please say yes…_

"Yeah! I mean, I'd even study right now." He claimed. "It'd be a hell of a lot more fun than this suck-fest." _Smooth._

"Sorry, I'm off duty!" she said giggling. _I can't believe I just giggled. Now he's gonna know I like him._

"Well then let me get you a drink," he said while silently praying she would say yes.

"Okay." _YES!_

Heading towards the kitchen, they were both flustered but neither was sure of how to break the ice. He grabbed her a soda, knowing she was above drinking. He really admired her for that, the way she stood proud and never cared what anyone thought of her. "Thanks," she replied softly.

"So how's the 'kiss your dad's ass' party going? Looks like a real party," she said a moment later while eyeing the guests who looked like they'd rather be watching paint dry.

Nathan snickered. He knew she was repeating his words from their tutoring session yesterday, and appreciated the fact that she really listened to him. Not many people did. "Well, as you can see, it's going down in the records as the most boring party in the history of parties. And that's being nice."

She laughed full hardily this time while her eyes lit up more and her hair danced with the movements of her head_. God, she's adorable, _he thought, while trying not to get caught staring.

"I'm glad you're here though, you just made this party a hell of a lot better."

"Well in case you haven't noticed, I'm not exactly 'the life of the party' type." She explained, surprised that she found her voice for the way he complimented her presence and stared at her with those gorgeous blue eyes, she could get lost in if she wasn't careful.

Nathan laughed once more. She always seemed to brighten his mood, no matter how he was feeling. It was something no one had been able to do in a long time, if ever. She was a genuinely happy person and never ceased to amaze him with more good qualities, the more they got to know each other. All he knew was that he wanted to know more. He wanted to get to know the real Haley that only few knew. He knew that her soul was golden, but he wished he could take a closer look or just be closer in general. When hair would fall in her face during tutoring, he wanted nothing more than to take the silky strand in his hands and tuck it behind her ear. When she was stressed after a long day, he wanted nothing more than to pull her into his embrace and caress her back until the stress fell to a puddle on the floor. And when she would put on more strawberry lip gloss or bite her bottom lip when she was nervous, all he wanted to do was kiss her. Kiss her senseless and hold her for as long as possible. The purpose of the tutoring was to stick it to Lucas, but he found himself looking forward to their sessions. He found himself racking his brain in the middle of a sleepless night sometimes, asking himself if this was still just a way to tear down him enemy or if it was because he felt more for Haley. He then realized that he liked Haley. And he liked her a lot.

Haley loved his laugh. She had come to recognize it when the two became friends the more they had sessions. She could feel the butterflies soaring in the pit of her stomach every time he looked at her or feel her heart doing a million-and-one flips when he would smile for real at her, not the cocky smirk he gave everyone else. He really wasn't the bastard that she thought he was. It was just a defensive wall that stood up when he was around his friends or peers. No, he wasn't like that at all. The real Nathan Scott was genuine. He was just a boy trying to exceed his father's expectations and drown his sorrows of not having the loving home environment he so desperately craved. He had a real passion for basketball, and she felt sorry for him for how he couldn't just sit back and enjoy it. She knew he was destined for greatness and this arrogant attitude he paraded around wasn't helping him get there. She found more and more great things about him with every passing moment the pair spent together. She couldn't help but be flustered when he would call her 'Hales.' Only the people close to her in her life called her that, and he didn't even know it. He also didn't know how much of an impact he was having on her feelings. She wanted desperately to hate him for Lucas' sake but she just couldn't. She liked him and Lucas knew it. The only thing stopping her was the unknown thoughts running through his mind. And it scared her, because she liked him. And she liked him a lot.

"Why don't we go outside? It's a nice night and it's getting too crowded in here anyway." He just wanted to be alone with her right now and Brooke's death glares towards them were killing the mood. Grabbing her hand, he led her away from the main event.

"Sure," she said following him out the glass doors into the glowing backyard that was practically deserted. He led them over to a pair of swings hanging from a big oak tree. It was almost romantic but she didn't think that was his intention. _I wish._

"Wow. Your backyard is beautiful! And so big," she said while trailing her eyes back over to Nathan.

"Well that's about the only perk about having Dan Scott as your father," he shared. The two laughed and joked and even flirted for a while more, just enjoying each other's company. They were glad they could talk so openly to each other. They had that great of a connection and even greater chemistry.

"I can't believe your favorite food is macaroni and cheese!" Nathan laughed. They were playing twenty questions, and he asked her favorite food.

"Dude, macaroni and cheese is food of the Gods!" she defended while hiding her own urge to laugh along with him.

"Yeah, if they Gods are five-year olds!" they soon both joined together laughing hysterically.

"Whatever, it's my turn now!" she exclaimed while pondering which question to ask next. "Okay what is a secret that no one else knows about you?"

"Hmm…" he said. He wasn't sure where she came up with that one. They were mostly doing questions that were simple or easy to answer, but she plunged into deeper things. He didn't mind though because he felt comfortable with her, and she would have to answer it when he was finished.

"C'mon big shot, what's your big secret?" she pleaded while whacking him on the shoulder.

"Okay," he stated while facing her more dead on. The swings were now turned sideways towards each other and her legs were in between where his legs were at. He liked this position and figured that if she wasn't backing away from the close quarters between them, then now was a good time to tell her how he felt.

"As you probably know, I've been with a lot of girls." Haley didn't know where he was going with this but she knew she didn't want to hear him talking about being with other girls. I almost made her jealous. _No way. I am not jealous, _she thought.

"But even though I've been with a lot of girls, I've never felt this way about any of them, not even with Peyton. They were mostly to help my self-esteem." He continued.

"What do you mean by 'this way'?" she asked slightly puzzled.

He hadn't realized that slip up until Haley mentioned it. He took a deep breath. There was no way of making up lies for this, so he gave in. _This is it, no turning back now._ "The way I feel being here with you. Talking to you, joking around with you, or even just looking at you."

She was shocked. She was still unsure if he felt anything for her and here he was confessing it to her and being completely vulnerable. She couldn't stop the smile that was starting to form on her face, and she didn't want to.

"I'm really nervous right now, and I don't get nervous, so I'm just going to say it. I like you Haley, a lot. And I've been trying to hide it because I didn't know how you felt. And I just need to know, even if you don't like me back because you are all I can think about no matter how hard I try to think of something else. The way you're such a better person than anyone else I've ever met. The way you help me to open up when I'm around you. And the way that you always look perfect even though you don't dress like the other girls at school. And I can't help but feel this way towards you." He knew he was rambling but he just had to let it all out, and now that he did he felt better. But, he couldn't stop his breath from hitching in his throat waiting for a reply staring into her shocked eyes.

She felt like she was dreaming. She wanted to pinch herself to make sure it was real but didn't want to embarrass herself in front of the boy who just totally let his feelings be known to her. She wanted to scream to him that she felt the same way, but couldn't seem to find her voice.

"I'm sorry, Haley," he started. "I shouldn't have said that. I just felt like I needed to get that off my chest and I'm sorry. I don't want to ruin what we have…"

"Nathan," she said cutting him off and placing her hand on his knee while walking forward on the swing so their faces were only a few inches from each other. They both felt the spark from that simple touch and their hearts started beating incredibly.

"Nathan, I like you, too. A lot. You– I can't help but be happy around you. I know this might be weird but, I've thought about what it's like to be with you." She exclaimed, equaling his vulnerability.

His heart soar. He felt like jumping and yelling out, but mostly he just wanted to kiss her.

"Did you ever imagine me doing this?" He took her face into his palms, cupping her cheeks and staring into her big-chocolate eyes. He slowly inched closer to make sure it was what she wanted.

She thought she would combust right then. The heat she was feeling and the way her heart was rapidly pounding was enough to kill her. And on top of that, Nathan's lust filled eyes made her breathing almost stop all together.

He was feeling the same thing. He just wanted to devour her perfect mouth but was hesitant to whether she wanted that or not. But she wasn't pulling away, so he continued until he finally caught her lips in his own.

It was slow and sensual, yet passionate and eager. She felt the kiss all the way down to her toes, and saw fireworks explode and the feel of his lips grazing hers. It suddenly wasn't enough as the pace and desire for more increased. She sustained her moan when she felt Nathan's tongue graze her lower lip, begging for entrance. She quickly granted him access and interlocked their hands. As great as it was he wanted to be closer, needed to be closer and he couldn't do that now that he heard Brooke and a few of his teammates joining them in the yard. He stood up, hesitantly breaking the kiss, and pulled her behind the base of the big oak tree so they could have more privacy.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she asked, completely puzzled by his actions.

"Brooke and some of the guys just came out, I didn't want them to see us."

Haley felt her heart sink_. Is he embarrassed by me? _She questioned herself. "Wait," he started while pushing his broad chest away from hers, "are you really that embarrassed to be seen with me?"

_Oh crap._

"No, no, Haley of course not!" he stuttered, stepping forward while trying to come up with the right words to say to her. Why did he always have to screw things up? He didn't know how he did it so often, and so well. He ruined a lot of good friendships when he joined the Ravens, a good relationship with Peyton. Okay, so maybe their relationship was horrible and they were so not meant to be together but that wasn't the point. The point was that he had this amazing girl right in front of him and because of his whole 'lack of thinking before speaking thing', he could she the hurt in her eyes as she began backing away.

"M-maybe this was a mistake," she said shakily. She felt as though it was the most right thing she had ever done but she had heard what Lucas said about him and his reputation, and she wouldn't let herself get hurt. The only way was to back out now to save herself the pain, especially since he was already proving her wrong. "I think I'm just going t-to go."

"Hales, no please just let me explain it! That's not what I meant I promise!"

"No Nathan, it's okay. I knew perfectly well what you meant. You don't need to explain yourself just please don't make this worse." She wanted to cry.

"Haley!" he yelled. This got her attention, along with the other occupants of the backyard.

"Haley that is honestly not what I meant. I don't usually think before I speak and it keeps getting me in trouble. But I don't want to be like that anymore. I don't want to be the guy that hurts everyone, especially you. I want to be good enough for you. The only reason I took you behind the tree is so I could have you to myself. I just kissed you for the first time five minutes ago, and I don't want to share you yet. Plus, Brooke would make a scene because she's already pissed at me and probably drunk of her ass. So please Hales, just forgive me and don't give up on me yet." He felt as though his was begging, but she was worth it.

"I'm not going to let you hurt me," she said barely above a whisper.

"Hales, I'm not going to hurt you. And if I do I promise I will let you beat my ass. I will deserve it," he chuckled trying to ease the mood.

Smiling, she just needed to reassure one more thing. "And I don't want you to be embarrassed by me. I know I'm not as pretty or hot as the other girls you've been with but I sure as hell won't be put down because of it."

"Haley any one would be lucky to have you as theirs. I know I sure would, and I would never, ever take you for granted or make you change to try and impress people. You are too good for me and I just want you for you. Nothing else matters." He stated and she truly believed him by the way his eyes were almost boring into her soul.

"And if you want me to announce it to the world I will!" with that he turned around and jumped on the swing while screaming out to all those listening. "I'm Nathan Scott and I like Haley James! I don't care if you like it but I like her and I hope she likes me so you can shove that up your snotty, drunken asses and suck it!"

Haley was laughing hysterically now at his antics and the shocked looks on his teammates faces and a few laughs from the other guests. He hoped down directly in front of her and took her hands in his. "Nothing else matters?" she questioned once more.

"Nothing else matters," he repeated while swooping down and kissing her passionately.

They knew this was the start to a beautiful relationship.

_-end_

**Thanks for reading! Now tell me, do you love it? do you hate it? does my writing need to be improved? Please let me know! Thanks so much!**

_-Taylor_


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